Last Night: J. Cole At Warehouse Live

On his second Texas tour with college-based concert promoting company Scoremore, Roc Nation artist J. Cole sold out Warehouse Live's ballroom Wednesday night, to an almost overwhelming all-ages crowd filled with diversity. The venue was so crammed there was barely enough room to hold a drink, but the energy was beyond positive.

Ladies in spandex dresses and stiletto heels came with hopes of catching the eye of the 26-year-old rapper with the charming looks. DJ Mr. Rogers kept the crowd's vibrant spirit up with his between-act sets. Although there was little room to move about, everyone seemed to be in a great mood.

At exactly 11 p.m., the lights dimmed, the "wait while we set up" music stopped and the audience started to chant "J. Cole." About 10 seconds later, Cole emerged on stage in a red jacket, khaki pants, one Jordan retro shoe on his right foot and a walking-cast boot on his left. Cole injured his ankle last Friday, and some reports said he broke his leg and was postponing his "Cole World" tour. Some Houstonians began to doubt Cole would still go on after the reports of his injury, but he showed his passion and dedication.

Cole opened his set with "Looking for Trouble," accompanied by not just a DJ but two keyboard players. The audience raised their hands to display the Roc-a-Fella diamond symbol, which made Aftermath reminisce about Jay-Z's Hard Knock Life tour. Some young girls shrieked "Oh my God!" and frantically reached out so Cole could touch their hand, not giving a shit about his injury.

Every song Cole did was a favorite. Twenty minutes into his set on the walking cast Cole decided to take a 30-second seat on a wooden stool placed in the middle of the stage. Cole's enthusiasm with the audience was astonishing, considering his ankle being sprained.

At about 11:45 Cole stopped to make a speech about how much he loves H-town. "There's one guy that came to my first Houston show and he has always supported me," he said. "I wanna bring out Bun B and Trae tha Truth!"

Cole exited the dark stage at about midnight. The audience chanted his name, and he returned about a minute later for an exuberant performance of his hit song "Who Dat." The stool came back out for Cole to have another 30 second sit-down, as ore Roc diamonds were thrown up in the audience as well as lighters and cameraphones.

Then, after a 70-minute performance, Cole effortlessly exited without one limp or stumble.

Personal Bias: I'd expect any artist presented by Scoremore to be awesome

The Crowd: Was shoulder to shoulder.

We Believe Local Journalism is Critical to the Life of a City

Engaging with our readers is essential to the mission of the Houston Press. Make a financial contribution or sign up for a newsletter, and help us keep telling Houston’s stories with no paywalls.

Support Our Journalism

Overheard In the Crowd: "I would still do him with that cast on his leg!"

Random Notebook Dump: If J. Cole and Tyler the Creator performed with an injured foot, then why can't Curren$y?